
4 0 c m
25cm
actual image size: 17cm x 32cm
Description
A poster advertising Green's balloon ascent from Nuns' Field in Newcastle on 30 May 1825. Charles Green (1785-1870) was one of the greatest English aeronauts and also pioneered the use of coal-gas in balloons. He made his first ascent, and the first ever to be made with coal-gas, on 19 July 1821, in a balloon called 'George IV Royal Coronation Balloon' in celebration of King George IV's (1762-1830) coronation. Green went on to make over 200 ascents in this balloon and its similar succesor. This ascent was probably made in the original Coronation balloon, which was made from a thousand yards of gold and crimson silk and could hold up to 22,698 cubic feet of gas. Green pledged half the proceeds from this ascent to the Newcastle Lying-In Hospital.
Image Details
Image Ref.
10410842
© Science Museum / Science & Society Picture Library